Chapter 321 - 297: So, It Was an Insider (Part 2)

Chapter 321: Chapter 297: So, It Was an Insider (Part 2)

Compared to the walls of Black Stone Town, this checkpoint was clearly much shabbier.

The grayish-white bricks of the wall were mottled, its cracks filled with coarse, yellow mud.

"Make way! Make way!"

The checkpoint was rather congested.

Farmers, hunters, and other townspeople jostled one another, all hurrying to line up and pass through.

But for a merchant caravan, there was, of course, a separate, dedicated entrance.

The caravan stopped before a wide side gate.

Two gate guards in Leather Armor stepped forward to inspect the documents Booker handed them.

"Ah, the merchant caravan from Black Stone Town..."

After reviewing the documents, the guard gave a routine wave of his hand. "Welcome, but we’ll need to inspect your carriages."

"No problem, no problem."

Booker nodded and bowed, the very picture of a deferential merchant.

"But I must inform you, our caravan had a rough journey. We were attacked by a Thief Gang just before we got here!"

"Attacked by a Thief Gang?"

The two guards’ lazy expressions instantly sharpened. They exchanged a glance, and their tone grew heavier.

"Were there any casualties? Where exactly did it happen? Do you need to enter the town for medical treatment?"

"We didn’t have any casualties. In fact, our Guard Team crushed the Thief Gang and even captured the survivors."

Booker puffed out his chest, saying proudly.

"If you would be so kind as to notify the Security Team, they can come and take custody of them."

Hearing this, the two guards looked even more stunned, as if Booker were telling some kind of fairy tale.

They were well aware of the bandit problem in the area. Just fending off a Thief Gang to protect one’s cargo was already a rare feat.

But capturing them alive?

’Just how vast of a power gap would be needed to pull something like that off?’

The leaders of other nearby caravans couldn’t help but glance over.

’What kind of Guard Team was this vicious?’

...

Zelir had just jumped out of the carriage for a breath of fresh air when he saw Booker approaching with five or six guards armed with Long Halberds.

The leader was a burly, square-jawed man in black armor.

He walked up to Zelir and gave a nod of acknowledgment.

"Hello, I am Knight, a sub-captain of the Tula Town Security Team."

"Oh..."

Zelir nodded. "I’m a member of this caravan’s Guard Team. Name’s Zelir."

"I hear you encountered a Thief Gang on the road and managed to defeat them."

Knight craned his neck to look at the carriage, a hint of doubt in his eyes. "And you took prisoners?"

"Yes, they’re all in the carriage," Zelir said.

CLATTER! Marcus yanked open the carriage door.

One by one, he kicked the six captive thieves out.

THUD... THUD...

With several pained grunts, six members of the Thief Gang, trussed up like pigs for slaughter, tumbled to the ground.

Covered in dirt, their arrogant swagger from the earlier robbery was long gone. Staring at the gleaming Long Halberds surrounding them, their eyes were filled with nothing but terror.

Knight’s expression turned to one of utter astonishment when he saw them.

"This... This is the Black Hat Thief Gang!"

"The Black Hat Thief Gang?"

Zelir scratched his head. "Are they famous or something?"

"Famous? They’re a thorn in our side!"

Knight said through gritted teeth, his hatred for them palpable.

"The Black Hat Thief Gang is the biggest bandit menace in the area around Tula Town."

"They’re always attacking passing caravans. It’s gotten so bad that many merchants are too afraid to take the Tula Town route anymore."

"It’s a massive blow to the local livelihood. The town’s economy has been suffering greatly because of them."

"We’ve organized numerous sweeps, pouring manpower and resources into scouring the mountains... but we could never find any trace of them. They always managed to slip away."

Knight looked at the dejected captives on the ground, his eyes filled with unconcealed admiration.

"To think you managed to catch them all in one fell swoop... Truly impressive!"

"And there’s this one, too."

The carriage door behind Zelir opened. Hill dragged Hopter out by the collar and threw him to the ground.

THUMP! The impact seemed to jolt Hopter awake.

"Urgh..."

He let out a pained groan and struggled to open his eyes.

Seeing the blood-soaked, one-eyed man, Knight’s eyes widened in disbelief.

"Hop... Hopter?!"

Hearing the familiar voice, Hopter, who was still groggy, instantly snapped to his senses.

His eyes went wide when he saw Knight. He squirmed, trying to shrink away, clearly terrified of the captain.

Gray hopped out of the carriage as well. He dusted off his hands. "You two know each other?"

"Know each other? It’s more than that..."

Knight’s expression was grim. "He used to be a member of the Security Team!"

At these words, the members of the Adventurer Squad were stunned as well.

Huh?

’This guy was a former member of the Security Team?’

"You mean..." It was starting to dawn on Zelir.

"So that’s why we could never catch the Black Hat Thief Gang."

Knight finally understood, gritting his teeth in hatred. "So you were the mole all along!"

"An inside man, you say?" Gray asked, his interest piqued.

"This disgrace! He used to be one of the few Divine Archers on the team, and he used his talent to run roughshod all over town!"

Knight sneered.

"Collecting protection money, starting drunken brawls in taverns, injuring townspeople, even using his official position to extort passing merchants... There was no end to the trouble he caused."

"The townspeople couldn’t stand him and complained to us constantly."

"So the head captain transferred him to patrol duty outside of town, hoping it would calm him down and temper his attitude."

"But even on patrol, he neglected his duties and slacked off. In the end, the head captain couldn’t tolerate it anymore and kicked him off the Security Team."

"But I never imagined... never imagined..."

Knight crouched down, his face a mask of utter contempt.

"Hopter, to think you’d sink so low as to run with thieves... Our patrol points outside of town, our guard rotation schedules... you must have had them all memorized, didn’t you?"

He ripped the gag from Hopter’s mouth.

The moment the gag was out, Hopter began to plead for his life.

"I was wrong, Captain Knight! For old times’ sake, please spare me!"

"I just lost my way for a moment, I swear! Please, give me another chance!"

"Give you a chance? Hasn’t the Security Team given you enough chances already?"

Knight said scornfully.

"The head captain valued your talent. He wanted you to advance to Middle Level Ranger and take on a more important role."

"He let you off the hook, both openly and behind the scenes, more times than I can count. He gave you plenty of resources... And how did you repay him?"

"You got your promotion, all right, but you used it to do this... I’m ashamed for you!"

"I really know I was wro—MMPH!"

Knight shoved the gag back into his mouth, unwilling to listen to another word from the man.

Then, with an icy expression, Knight waved a hand.

"Take them away!"

"Yes, sir!"

The Security Team members at his side promptly hauled Hopter to his feet.

"Captain Knight, I have a question."

Watching Hopter get dragged away, Zelir asked curiously, "According to the Kingdom’s laws, what will happen to him?"

"If he were just an ordinary member of the Thief Gang, he’d probably be shackled and sentenced to a lifetime of hard labor."

Knight said, "But Hopter... he’ll certainly be put to death."

"But isn’t he a Middle Level Professional? Shouldn’t he be more valuable alive?" Zelir asked, confused.

"It’s precisely because he’s a Middle Level Professional."

Knight explained.

"Someone with his level of Power and a corrupt heart is the most difficult to guard. It would be a waste of manpower, and with one slip-up, he could easily escape."

"So, the standard procedure is execution by hanging."

"I see..."

Zelir nodded slowly.

’It made sense.’

’Guarding a Middle Level Professional would require at least two guards of the same Level, or one of a higher Level.’

’For the powerful, the cost of committing a crime is extremely low, while the cost of containment is extremely high.’

’If he can’t be controlled, then destruction is the most efficient solution.’

"Right... Thank you for your contribution to the security of Tula Town. We do have a bounty on the Black Hat Thief Gang."

At this, Knight hesitated.

"It’s just... we have a bounty for providing information, but not one for completely wiping out the Thief Gang..."

"We never expected anyone to actually accomplish it... I’ll have to go back and ask the head captain."